Extra point · Back
Lower Pole Shu
下极俞Xià Jí ShùAnatomical location
Below the spinous process of L3, on the midline.
Same point as CP71 · Xià Jí Shū — Curious Points catalogMain function
Strengthens the Kidney and the lower back.
Therapeutic indications
- Low back pain
- urinary disorders
- diarrhea
Name and classical tradition
Xiajishu, 下极俞, is the “Shu of the lower pole”: 下极 (下極) is the lowest part of the trunk; 俞, the transport point. It lies on the midline, below the third lumbar vertebra. It should be distinguished from the 下極 of the Nanjing (Classic of Difficulties), which in Difficulty 28 is the place where the Du Mai arises, at the base of the spine.
The Qianjin Yaofang (Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold) already mentions it in chapter 20 with its indication: “腹疾腰痛，膀胱寒飲注下，灸下極俞，隨年壯” — for abdominal complaints, lumbar pain, and Cold in the bladder with diarrhea, as many cones as the patient has years. The text does not give its location in that passage.
